Implantable CRM devices such as pacemakers and defibrillators are used to treat cardiac arrhythmias, heart failure, and other cardiovascular disorders by delivering electrical energy to the heart. Advances in biomedical technology have provided implantable CRM devices with increasingly sophisticated features and operational modes adaptive to a patient's changing physiological conditions and individualized lifestyle. As a consequence, programming an implantable CRM device has become an increasingly complicated task for the users including healthcare professionals.
To operate in a patient after implantation, an implantable CRM device is programmed by a user using an external programming device. The programming device includes a user interface that allows the user to observe the patient's conditions indicated by signals acquired by the implantable CRM device and to program the implantable CRM device by entering or selecting a series of programmable parameters. Such parameters include, but are not limited to, therapy modes and quantitative parameters required for operating in each therapy mode, special features and quantitative parameters required for utilizing each special feature, and various therapy activation or feature activation criteria. Additionally, devices of different types, as well as some devices of the same type, require different programmable parameters and/or different programming procedures. The user may have to receive extensive training on how to program each specific type of implantable CRM devices and may have to spend months or even years before being able to optimally utilize many advanced features. Introductions of new device features, while providing the users with additional power in treating cardiovascular diseases, tend to make the programming of implantable CRM devices more intimidating. One undesirable consequence is underutilization of available device features and capabilities. If properly utilized, such underutilized device features and capabilities will potentially provide substantial additional benefits to many patients who have already benefited from implantable CRM devices.
For these and other reasons, there is a need to provide healthcare professionals with a user-friendlier device for programming implantable CRM devices.